I just found out that Joshua Davis will be in town tonight, and I’m not going to be able to make it. So the rest of you local types need to get down there and attend! Even if you don’t use Flash, as in fact I don’t, Josh is a great speaker and you’ll have a lot of fun, so hurry up and RSVP. The entrance fee may be a bit of a deterrent, but trust me, if you have the cash to spare it will be well invested… if for no other reason than getting a chance to look at Josh’s extensive tattoos.

I don’t know how your day has been, but I learned something about myself this morning. There’s an online CSS-centric forum that I frequently read—actually, there are several that I read, popping up every now and again to post, but there’s this one I have in mind. My last few posts there have gone basically unacknowledged, despite the fact that my posts were (I think) detailed and helpful. Of course, I didn’t post them to generate worship, but these didn’t even get so much as a “thank you” or “that worked.” I posted, and then it was crickets. Other threads were continuing, so I knew the community was still in some sense active.

So as I made my morning rounds of various weblogs, forums, mailing lists, newsgroups, and so forth, I thought to myself, “You know what? I’m not going there any more. I don’t have time to help out people who don’t even acknowledge that I tried to help out.” Childish and petty, I suppose, but that’s what I thought. Then, several minutes later, I found myself headed to the very place I’d resolved to abandon, because I wondered if there would be any interesting posts, anyone looking for help that I could provide. I realized that providing assistance was more important than any wounded feelings I might have.

So what I learned is that I can be petty, but that the pettiness gets trumped by other, stronger motivations. I think that’s a good balance to have in my life. It may be the key to thickening one’s skin, which is another necessary trait, particularly online.